Father and son timpanists make beautiful music together

July 30, 2024

By David M. Krakow

Two School of Music alumni recently experienced a bonding moment worthy of the swelling, emotional thunder of an orchestral movement. It occurred as the two classical musicians, both timpanists, made a rare, joint appearance with The Florida Orchestra. 

And, for an added flourish — they’re father and son.

“I knew this was an opportunity of a lifetime,” says Kelsey Bannon. He played the timpani — part of the kettledrum family — alongside his father, John, during a performance of Mahler’s 2nd Symphony at St. Petersburg’s Mahaffey Theater. “It’s something I’ve dreamed about my whole life.” 

John and Kelsey, USF grads both, do not frequently ply their trades for the same ensembles or on the same stages. John, Music ’78, is the orchestra’s principal timpanist and performs often at the Mahaffey as well as other venues in St. Petersburg, Tampa and Clearwater. 

Kelsey is more a freelance practitioner who usually fills in as an orchestra substitute or extra. But when opportunity knocked — or, perhaps, drummed — to perform together in May, he jumped. “You have to smell the roses when they’re in front of you,” he says. 

Father and son were in turn measured and ebullient as they discussed their separate and parallel professional lives. Kelsey received his bachelor’s in percussion performance from Oberlin College and Conservatory in Ohio in 2018. Both received a master’s in percussion performance, John in 1979 from the University of Michigan, Kelsey 42 years later from USF. John then added a doctoral degree in musical arts from the University of Miami in 2004.

Each cited the influence of Robert McCormick, the longtime, tenured professor of percussion at USF who, many years apart, mentored John and daughter, Elizabeth, Education ’10. 

The Bannon home was full of music. For years, John’s wife, Carmen, gave private flute lessons, usually five or six times a day. Elizabeth performed in piano, flute and percussion ensembles and danced in school. Carmen, also a USF alum, is a flutist in the Sarasota Orchestra. 

“There were all sorts of instruments in our house,” Kelsey says. “It’s part of my identity, part of who I am. Playing with my dad is just sort of an extension of that. I remember banging with my dad on erector sets, pots and pans.”

John and Carmen still live in St. Petersburg. Kelsey lives in Largo and Elizabeth is a USF alumni officer in the Office of Engagement and Constituent Relations in the College of Public Health. She is also director of the USF Herd of Thunder Marching band colorguard in the School of Music and director of the Winterguard program.

Second timpanists are only required two or three times a year for Florida Orchestra performances, John says, but principal percussionist John Shaw reached out to him about adding one for Symphony No. 2 in C minor, also known as the “Resurrection” symphony. Second seat percussionist Dave Coash, Music ’81, wasn’t available, so John received the clearances he needed and approached his son.  

“He (Shaw) said, ‘Sometime before you quit, I want you to have Kelsey play with you,’” John says. “The principal percussionist has been Kelsey’s teacher since around the sixth grade.” 

John had taught Kelsey for a while when his son was younger, but decided it was best to stick with just being his dad. 

“If Kelsey has a lousy teacher, he can get another teacher. Getting another dad is a more complicated procedure.” 

During May’s performance, neither took the time for a lot of sideways glances. They had to stay in the moment. 

“I’ve got a job to do,” John says. “It’s not about how I feel, but how I act, so I tried not to allow any of those sentiments until it was over. It would’ve been too distracting.” 
Kelsey says eye contact wasn’t necessary.

“It was just a chance to sit next to him and do my thing and watch him do his thing and it was just really special.” 

What draws each to the instrument?

“First off, it comes to me like breathing,” John says. “It’s not work. According to the laws of music, it (timpani) shouldn’t be that important, but somehow, it’s the whole ball game. It’s a copper vessel open on one end that you stretch a skin across. Just getting that skin to the point where it actually gives you a note takes quite a bit of skill. To say something musically, it takes a lot of artistry. You can move an entire orchestra of 100 people in this or that direction.”

Adds Kelsey:
“In an orchestra, there are multiple solo voices and there are contextual voices. Timpani is both. It fills out the body of an orchestra, but goes above and beyond. It does its own thing and to me, is often heroic.” 

But for Kelsey, the partnership that May evening involved heroism beyond the instrument’s intrinsic qualities. 

“Naturally, I love playing with him because he’s my dad,” he says. “To me, he’s one of the great heroes of the orchestra. Playing with him was very validating. I really did feel several times like, you know what, I’ve made it.”